Christopher Vogler The Writer's Journey Archetypes

The Writer's Journey

" As a writer you have clear the decks for action. Clear your desk, get all the business out of the way, clean up your act. Then put one element or object relevant to your story in front of you." Christopher Vogler

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Have you ever seen a great movie or read a particularly entrancing novel and said, "Boy, I wish I could be a writer." Well, guess what....you can!

Our show brings to light the secrets of great writing in an easy to understand, instantaneously applicable way. You see, no matter what era or locale a story takes place in, most have a distinct, underlying mythic framework that mythologist, Joseph Campbell coined "The Hero's Journey." If you look closely into every great written work, from Greek Mythology to Sci-Fi, you'll usually find a hero's journey; whereby a person is called upon by fate to leave the safety of the 'established' and venture out into the unknown. Story analyst, Chris Vogler explains the fundamental elements underlying all good storytelling, as well as, creating realistic characters, directing plot points and avoiding the problems and pitfalls. On a personal level, understanding the stages of this "journey" gives you a roadmap for dealing with your own life's changes and transitions.

So, if you ever have dreamed of writing your own story, script or the next great novel, but don't know where to begin, tune in to Straight from the Heart's: "The Writer's Journey"

Archetypes

Within all of our psyches, there reside a common cast of characters that we see reflected around us in the movies we watch, the books we read, our dreams and fantasies. Chris Vogler believes that "for the storyteller, knowing character archetypes are indispensable tools of the trade. You can't tell stories without them." In our show, Chris and Sheri discuss the archetypes that occur most frequently in our stories, dreams and mythology and that are most useful for a writer to understand. You'll learn about:

	What an archetype is.
	What you have in common with the Hero, Mentor,  Threshold Guardian, Shape shifter & Shadow
	Archetypes and how these archetypes are relevant  to your life.
	The psychological function and part of our  personality each archetype represents.
	Applying Archetypes to your story lines.

By understanding archetypes, you'll have a deeper understanding of your own psyche and the universal themes that run through all of our lives.

Chris Vogler is the author of "The Writer's Journey," which has been translated into many languages and is an international guidebook for TV and movie writers. He has been a staff story consultant for major Hollywood studios, including Fox, Disney, United Artists and Warner Bros. Most recently, he was Director of Development at Fox 2000. While at Disney, Chris first worked out a system for analyzing stories based on the work of Joseph Campbell. This work has became required reading at many studios. Chris teaches film writing and analysis classes throughout the U.S. and Europe. In both of our shows, "The Writer's Journey" & "Archetypes," Chris provides an insider's look at how to create powerful stories.